Are these parts compatible?

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New Member

Hey guys! I started the build today and the out-of-case boot went fine! I mounted the motherboard, power supply and started hooking things up, but I'm purplexed.. Where do my case fans hook in? They have a 3-pin connected to another three pin which ends up being a 4-pronged thing. I looked in the manual and it's not 100% great with details. I don't see any spots that come out to support the 4-pronged pin.. Do I need an adapter or something?

Hey guys! I started the build today and the out-of-case boot went fine! I mounted the motherboard, power supply and started hooking things up, but I'm purplexed.. Where do my case fans hook in? They have a 3-pin connected to another three pin which ends up being a 4-pronged thing. I looked in the manual and it's not 100% great with details. I don't see any spots that come out to support the 4-pronged pin.. Do I need an adapter or something?

You only really need 2 pins, 12v and a ground. The third pin is a return signal that tells the machine how fast the fan is spinning. On 4-pin connectors, the 4th pin is a PWM signal that regulates fan speed without changing the provided voltage on the +12v line. Still, you really only need +12v and ground.

It looks like the first one. From what I've read though, I should be able to unplug the molex plug and just use the three-pin to connect to the points on the motherboard? I also read somewhere that Molex plugs are mainly for plugging it into the power supply (if you don't have enough case fan plugs), is that correct?

New Member

Got everything plugged in and did a second test boot but got a CPU Fan Error showing up on my monitor, along with a no keyboard detected error (which is fine). What confuses me is the CPU fan is spinning fine, any idea what could cause the error? Also, is the power supply fan only supposed to spin at certain heat, or all the time? Mine only spins for a few seconds then stops.

After rebooting a couple times the error went away, is that normal? I read somewhere that if the fan spins lower than the setting in the BIOS it will throw the CPU Fan Error, is there any validity to that?

Got everything plugged in and did a second test boot but got a CPU Fan Error showing up on my monitor, along with a no keyboard detected error (which is fine). What confuses me is the CPU fan is spinning fine, any idea what could cause the error? Also, is the power supply fan only supposed to spin at certain heat, or all the time? Mine only spins for a few seconds then stops.

CPUs generally like having the third pin, so they can figure out what speed the fan is operating at. If this information is not present, the system throws up a warning (whether there is a power draw for the fan or not). You should really get a three pin fan, unless you think that the fan you're using is never going to fail. In my experience, this assumption is usually rewarded with an overheating CPU.

As far as the PSU, it depends. Some PSUs want to minimize noise. They will include a thermal resistor that signals the fan to only turn on when a certain temperature is reached. Give the system a bit of running time, and see if the fan kicks on. Given that it starts initially, you've likely got thermal controls. If it runs for a while (10 to 20 minutes on moderate use) without having the fans turn on then you should be concerned.

Additionally, check the product box to see if there are is advertised thermal regulation.

New Member

CPUs generally like having the third pin, so they can figure out what speed the fan is operating at. If this information is not present, the system throws up a warning (whether there is a power draw for the fan or not). You should really get a three pin fan, unless you think that the fan you're using is never going to fail. In my experience, this assumption is usually rewarded with an overheating CPU.

As far as the PSU, it depends. Some PSUs want to minimize noise. They will include a thermal resistor that signals the fan to only turn on when a certain temperature is reached. Give the system a bit of running time, and see if the fan kicks on. Given that it starts initially, you've likely got thermal controls. If it runs for a while (10 to 20 minutes on moderate use) without having the fans turn on then you should be concerned.

Additionally, check the product box to see if there are is advertised thermal regulation.

Alright, I'll take a look It kicks on when I boot it (I'm only doing test boots for now), so I'm not sure if I'll come close to the temperature it would need. Also, on the box it says it's thermally controlled, so I'm assuming that means it will only spin-up when needed

New Member

Sorry I haven't posted lately! I have to say I am REALLY happy with the end result, and especially the fact that I built it myself (aside from the help here - which is VERY much appreciated!) A quick question though, what is a "good"/expected temperature for the graphics card? Mine is about 46 degrees Celsius (114.8 degrees Fahrenheit). Is that high or good? Also, that temperature is under little to no load (I have the Catalyst Center open while typing this). Also, is the activity measuring VRAM usage, or just data to/from the card? I've only seen it get to ~20% with Minecraft, and will try Orcs Must Die 2 and Dirt: Showdown a bit later.

I'm REALLY happy with the performance for gaming though (everything at stock speeds), besides in Minecraft.. Aside from that though, it's performing good enough for Dirt: Showdown and Orcs Must Die 2 to guess high settings - and both have run flawlessly on that setting!

I would again like to thank everyone for their help and for answering my noobish questions. I can safely say thanks to all of you my first build was a major success! Can't wait for the next!

Most VRMs aren't powering a 6-core Intel beast. ...but you're right, the 8+2 will work fine. I'm just saying that the extra phases make a difference. I have almost no Vdroop, voltages are rock solid and stable, voltages never jump around (except with entering different power states, which it should,) and if you check out Cadaveca's review on the deluxe, the VRM idle power has a good indication that it's one of the most efficient VRMs you can get your hands on at the time of the review.

It really all depends on the quality of the VRMs though as well. sometimes motherboard manufactures will have less VRMs on lower board, and then have more on the higher end, but the higher end has lower quality power design so.

Sorry I haven't posted lately! I have to say I am REALLY happy with the end result, and especially the fact that I built it myself (aside from the help here - which is VERY much appreciated!) A quick question though, what is a "good"/expected temperature for the graphics card? Mine is about 46 degrees Celsius (114.8 degrees Fahrenheit). Is that high or good? Also, that temperature is under little to no load (I have the Catalyst Center open while typing this). Also, is the activity measuring VRAM usage, or just data to/from the card? I've only seen it get to ~20% with Minecraft, and will try Orcs Must Die 2 and Dirt: Showdown a bit later.

I'm REALLY happy with the performance for gaming though (everything at stock speeds), besides in Minecraft.. Aside from that though, it's performing good enough for Dirt: Showdown and Orcs Must Die 2 to guess high settings - and both have run flawlessly on that setting!

I would again like to thank everyone for their help and for answering my noobish questions. I can safely say thanks to all of you my first build was a major success! Can't wait for the next!

It really all depends on the quality of the VRMs though as well. sometimes motherboard manufactures will have less VRMs on lower board, and then have more on the higher end, but the higher end has lower quality power design so.

My brothers sapphire r 6770 idles at 34 C at 157/300 MHz for core and ram that is with the ambient room temp being 74 degress F. Id say your temps are good. Btw that machine will last several gens and upgrades other than swapping motherboard.

Sorry I haven't posted lately! I have to say I am REALLY happy with the end result, and especially the fact that I built it myself (aside from the help here - which is VERY much appreciated!) A quick question though, what is a "good"/expected temperature for the graphics card? Mine is about 46 degrees Celsius (114.8 degrees Fahrenheit). Is that high or good? Also, that temperature is under little to no load (I have the Catalyst Center open while typing this). Also, is the activity measuring VRAM usage, or just data to/from the card? I've only seen it get to ~20% with Minecraft, and will try Orcs Must Die 2 and Dirt: Showdown a bit later.

I'm REALLY happy with the performance for gaming though (everything at stock speeds), besides in Minecraft.. Aside from that though, it's performing good enough for Dirt: Showdown and Orcs Must Die 2 to guess high settings - and both have run flawlessly on that setting!

I would again like to thank everyone for their help and for answering my noobish questions. I can safely say thanks to all of you my first build was a major success! Can't wait for the next!